Winding paths through the tea ground curve and bend,
Where wild trails through the lush foliage extend.
Denser where they face the sun's warm light,
Sparser by the back stream, hidden from sight.
Slowly coiling like cloud-like locks overhead,
Clustered like small scent mounds where fragrances spread.
Where to find this secluded rendezvous?
Dawn's spring dew graces the rocks with pearls anew.
Original Poem
「奉和袭美茶具十咏 · 茶坞」
陆龟蒙
茗地曲隈回，野行多缭绕。
向阳就中密，背涧差还少。
遥盘云髻慢，乱簇香篝小。
何处好幽期，满岩春露晓。
Interpretation
This poem is part of a series exchanged between Lu Guimeng and his close friend Pi Rixiu (courtesy name Pimei). Both were representatives of the "late Tang recluse tradition," often composing poems on tea, landscapes, and pastoral life to express their feelings. The series Ten Odes on Tea Utensils takes tea-related tools and settings—such as tea gardens, tea cauldrons, tea stoves, tea rollers, and tea mortars—as themes, celebrating each both as objects and as vehicles for personal expression. This piece, "Tea Garden," focuses on the terrain where tea is cultivated, depicting the environment and atmosphere of tea mountains and fields. Living in the Jiangnan countryside and often engaged in tea-related activities, Lu was deeply familiar with tea gardens, resulting in a vivid and detailed portrayal filled with the leisurely spirit of reclusion.
First Couplet: "茗地曲隈回，野行多缭绕。"
Míng dì qū wēi huí, yě xíng duō liáo rào.
The tea-growing land winds through hidden bends;
Wild paths meander in tangled curves.
The opening highlights the tea garden’s environment: nestled in mountains and water, with曲折 (qūzhé, winding) terrain. "Meander" (缭绕 liáo rào) describes not only the twisting paths but also the secluded atmosphere deep within woods and valleys.
Second Couplet: "向阳就中密，背涧差还少。"
Xiàng yáng jiù zhōng mì, bèi jiàn chà hái shǎo.
Facing the sun, the plants grow dense;
By shaded streams, they are somewhat sparse.
This couplet details the tea bushes’ distribution. Sun-facing slopes, with ample sunlight, foster lush growth; shaded, damp areas near streams are sparser. The poet’s realistic touch shows understanding of tea’s growth habits, almost agricultural in observation.
Third Couplet: "遥盘云髻慢，乱簇香篝小。"
Yáo pán yún jì màn, luàn cù xiāng gōu xiǎo.
From afar, it coils like a cloud-chignon, soft and slow;
Up close, it clusters like tiny incense burners, wild yet tidy.
This couplet uses metaphors: from a distance, the tea mountain resembles a woman’s coiled hairstyle (云髻 yún jì), graceful and layered; up close, the tea bushes gather like small incense burners (香篝 xiāng gōu), dense and orderly. Using everyday images, the poet gives the tea garden both natural grandeur and cultural resonance.
Fourth Couplet: "何处好幽期，满岩春露晓。"
Héchù hǎo yōu qī, mǎn yán chūn lù xiǎo.
Where is the best place for a quiet rendezvous?
The tea-covered cliffs at dawn, brimming with spring dew.
The conclusion shifts to mood, envisioning the tea garden at dawn—dewdrops glittering on lush leaves—as the ideal setting for a tranquil meeting. This blends scene and emotion, portraying the tea garden as a place for mental cultivation and harmony with nature.
Holistic Appreciation
More than a description, this poem is a vibrant pastoral landscape painting. The poet progresses from paths to terrain, tea distribution to overall views, then to distant and close-up metaphors, finally envisioning human-nature unity—layer by layer expanding the tea garden’s form and spirit.
The poem reflects both Lu’s familiarity with tea and the late Tang literati mindset: withdrawing from noise, embracing nature, finding companionship in tea, and seeking leisure and transcendence. The language is fresh and lively, rich in pictorial and everyday charm, showcasing the enduring style of Lu’s landscape and pastoral poetry.
Artistic Merits
- Skillful scenery depiction, meticulous detail: The tea garden’s portrayal is highly specific, from terrain and orientation to distant and close views, all with clear layers, demonstrating the author’s power of observation as a "pastoral poet."
- Emotion infused into scenery, subtle meaning: The imagined "quiet rendezvous" (幽期 yōu qī) is not just scenic but conveys the literati’s leisurely heart in embracing nature, transforming landscape into spiritual refuge.
- Vivid metaphors, elegant imagery: The "cloud-chignon" and "incense burners" metaphors are full of everyday vitality, highlighting the tea garden’s beauty while hinting at scholarly elegance, making the scene dynamic rather than static.
- Continuing the exchange tradition, reflecting philosophical ease: As part of Ten Odes on Tea Utensils, this poem belongs to a shared poetic exchange. Its natural, unadorned tone enhances its leisurely flavor.
Insights
This is not merely a pastoral scene but an embodiment of literati tea culture. It reminds us that nature and culture are not separate; tea gardens are not just agricultural sites but also poetic dwellings. Even in the turbulent late Tang, scholars could find solace in nature and tea. This ability to "find poetry in ordinary places" is a central charm of Lu Guimeng’s poetic art.
About the Poet
Lu Guimeng (陆龟蒙 ？– c. 881 CE), a native of Suzhou, Jiangsu, was a Late Tang dynasty writer and agronomist. After failing the imperial examinations, he retreated to a reclusive life in Puli, Songjiang. He formed a famous literary partnership with the poet Pi Rixiu, and the pair are often referred to collectively as "Pi-Lu." His poetry is known for its social satire and a style that is incisive yet subtly restrained. His inclusion in the Biographies of Talents of the Tangunderscores his significance. The modern writer Lu Xun famously praised his essays, noting that they provided "a sharp radiance piercing through a world of muddle". Lu Guimeng is regarded as a uniquely distinctive voice in the literary scene of the late Tang.
